The Valley
by Razell
Summary: The missing 2nd chapter of my story 'Monsters'. Krek meets the druids, and Alya, for the first time.


The Valley

"I can see him clearly, but I have never seen anything like him." Leafreader examined Spider-Eye's companion through the hawk's eyes. "He looks like a demon of some kind. . ." The other members of The Circle were stunned. A _demon_? Here, in the valley they were sworn to protect?

Today Spider-Eye was introducing his new slave to The Circle, a group of druids who ran the valley in which he would be hunting. Krek was unsure what a 'druid' was, from Spider-Eye's description, they were creatures that lived as a part of nature. That sounded a lot like elementals. And the elementals of Azzagrat had been terrible creatures, even by his standards. Apparently, each member of The Circle had bonded with a different aspect of nature. Some were tied to wolves, others to hawks or deer, and one to spiders. Spider-Eye assured him that the latter creature, named Torvin, was _not_ a worshiper of Lolth. Despite these differences, they all apparently served the same deity, a human god named Silvanus who oversaw forests and the natural world. As The Abyss would be considered by most people an unnatural place, he wondered how they would react when they learned he had been born there.

The beholder and his enigmatic companion emerged from the looming darkness and into the torch-lit meeting grove. The creature beside the orb was surprising to all. He was at least 13ft tall, with jet-black skin and beautiful emerald eyes that hinted at a subtle darkness within. His body was perfectly sculpted, save for his long, troll-like nose. Two polished red horns jutted from his forehand, and his dark black hair was pulled tight against his scalp. He was both imposing and attractive, and moved with grace and ease of a dancer. Or a _predator_.

He smiled, revealing perfect, razor sharp teeth.

The Circle was a strange group, mainly humans and elves. _Surface_ elves. Krek had never seen a surface elf. He hoped they were better than the drow. He used all of his powerful senses to examine them. He noted that one of the druids looked like a young human but smelled like a spider. Torvin, no doubt. One of the humans caught his attention, an attractive, dark-skinned young woman standing beside what Spider-Eye had identified earlier in their explorations as a wolf. A fearsome predator. His master had told him of the woman as well. _Alya_. She had to be a fierce predator herself, to bond with such a creature. That alone stirred his interests. She had a feral air about her, adding a hint of danger to her beauty.

Yes, this woman was worth his attention.

"This is my new slave, Krek." The beholder spoke with the easy manner of a being unencumbered by the morality that governs most beings. "He is a troll."

He looked like no troll the druids had ever seen.

Spider-Eye seemed to note the confusion, "A black troll, from the realm of Azzagrat. A very rare breed."

"Like a prize _horse_, no doubt." Alya replied sarcastically.

"Yes," Krek replied, amusement in his voice, "Like a prized _stallion_."

Alya blushed deeply. Spider-Eye had told him that many surface-dwellers found the idea of slavery cruel and demeaning. Was she actually standing up for _him_? "Don't worry about me. My life here is far better than it was in Azzagrat or Menzoberranzan." At the mention of The City of The Spider Queen the elves among the group indicated fear and disgust. He didn't blame them for hating their dark cousins, gods knew _he_ certainly did.

"I am Leafreader," An elf stepped forward and forced a smile to his lips. He was clearly uncomfortable and bore the scent of fear. He introduced the members of The Circle in turn and explained their purpose.

Leafreader was somewhat disturbed. This creature was a native of Azzagrat, realm of Graz'zt, the most infamous, perverse incubus/Demon Lord in The Abyss. Growing up in such an environment would definitely not instill any acceptable morals and life among the drow was little better, if not worse. And his green eyes kept falling upon Alya.

"Spider-Eye. When we made our agreement to allow. . ." Telling a beholder that he needed to be given permission for something was an extremely dangerous action, "I mean, for living here in peace, nothing was said about _slaves_ or. . . The point I'm trying to make is that we did not expect you to bring others here. We certainly did not expect you to take a slave."

Spider-Eye considered for a moment. He belatedly remembered that some surface cultures took a dim view of slavery. They were upset, not by Krek's presence, but by his status. Did he not himself say that his life was better as the beholder's slave? And he hadn't even _Charmed_ him!

Krek realized what his master apparently did not. They were disturbed both by his status as a slave and his fearsome potential. He could be an imposing, even terrifying figure to other beings. "I assure you." He said cheerfully, "I have no desire to harm either you or your forest. I like it here, and would hate to have to leave. Besides, I have no wish to earn the wrath of your deity."

For a troll, this creature was incredibly intelligent and eloquent. Leafreader was impressed, "Please, allow us to discuss this matter amongst ourselves. I'm sure that we can find a reasonable solution."

The beholder agreed.

"To allow _slavery_ within the valley. . ."

"He appears quite happy with the situation. Did you notice how freely his spoke?"

"He could simply be _Charmed_."

"I detected no such spell."

"He comes from Azzagrat! The Abyss!"

"Among evil beings slavery is a simple fact of existence. What are we to do? We cannot force the beholder to free his slave, and to drive them away would accomplish nothing," Torvin reasoned, "Let us observe them. See who and what we are dealing with before we judge them."

No one could argue with the wisdom of his words.

Krek was rather amused by the fuss he'd caused. Such strange people! Caring so much about a slave! And a _troll_ slave at that! The fact that _he_ was said slave didn't matter much to him. Slavery was a part of life to him. He had been raised in a world where the weak served the strong, either as slaves or as food. He hadn't given it much thought. It was just the way life was. So far, his life was good, even if he was technically a slave. If things ever got bad, he could just _Teleport_ away or kill his master.

The elf called Leafreader approached, "We have come to a decision. If you can live in harmony with the forest, who are we to deny you? As long as you keep to the agreement we made with your master, there should be no conflict between us."

Krek nodded his understanding.

"I'm sure that my servant will comply with our agreement." Spider-Eye intentionally avoided the word 'slave'.

Krek smiled broadly at the wolf-woman, "See you around."

The End.

I accidentally submitted chapter 3 of my story 'Monsters' for both 2 and 3, and lost the original chapter 2. This is my re-write of chapter 2 of 'Monsters'.

I don't think Graz'zt is, technically, an incubus, but he is infamous for his many, many sexual exploits. I used the term to denote his lifestyle, not his actual race.


End file.
